Planescape: Torment - MCA on what a spiritual successor would look like

At first glance, the painterly world and the HUD would be as distinctive as something you'd see in Planescape: Torment. We'd need to nail down a new art style, but there's elements related to Planescape that transcend that universe (dimension-bending landscapes, Escher-layouts, etc.). We wouldn't do anything approaching traditional fantasy in the look/layout of the world. Why? Because I'm exhausted with that. And if that's not compelling for people, then they won't back it on Kickstarter, my question of how appealing that is would be laid to rest, and I'll never have to wonder about it again.
A camera and click-movement presentation similar to the Infinity engine isometric games. Even if the mechanics are different, at first glance, the game should share the view that Planescape did.
Having a character basis and an advancement scheme with spells, traits, and abilities that are suited to the campaign setting and the system and narrative mechanics. As an example, Dak'kon's Unbroken Circle of Zerthimon and the spells he gained from that had a strong narrative bent, and I enjoy balancing out skill and spell trees that reinforce the philosophy of the world.

Yeah, I'd buy this for 100 bucks. Endless mobs respawns only belong in mmo's. One day, if Chris gets bored, I'd like to see him start a kickstarter for this just for the giggles, and then of course for him to actually follow through.

I know this would sound somewhat controversial, but a Mass Effect like universe could support the variety of species and "planes" that we could see in PsT. Or some other sci-fi universe, where a multiverse becomes available through technology instead of magic (or creation). One could even bring in worm-holes and weird time-paradoxes.

I don't see why a spiritual successor has to be fantasy, it could easily be sci-fi.
I mean he even said that he doesn't want to have it in a classic fantasy world. It might even be easier to create it in sci-fi or a mixture of sci-fi/fantasy.

Originally Posted by syllogz
I know this would sound somewhat controversial, but a Mass Effect like universe could support the variety of species and "planes" that we could see in PsT. Or some other sci-fi universe, where a multiverse becomes available through technology instead of magic (or creation). One could even bring in worm-holes and weird time-paradoxes.

I don't see why a spiritual successor has to be fantasy, it could easily be sci-fi.
I mean he even said that he doesn't want to have it in a classic fantasy world. It might even be easier to create it in sci-fi or a mixture of sci-fi/fantasy.

I wonder how expensive an over-the-shoulder 3D look would be. Preferably at a default zoom distance of, say, halfway between PS:T and The Witcher. With the ability to pan up over your head and look at the opposite, overhead end of Sigil (or whatever the Sigil'esque city is). I'm simply awed by what could become of that: walking through a market square with the architecture bending over you; in the distance, a faint shimmering viewable only at a specific angle.

FINALLY:

Items with stories. One of my favorite parts of Torment and the Icewind Dale series was giving them names and writing short stories for each inventory item… and sometimes very long stories (The Fanged Mirror of Yehcir-Eya).

A man after my own heart! Why the hell has this aspect of game lore completely disappeared?! It added so much depth to BG and ID.

All in all, however, I'm most disappointed with this initial MCA statement:

Chris Avellone: [Game development studio] Obsidian has talked about Kickstarter for some time. Not to put myself or Planescape down, but the range of ideas we've had internally for a KS are, IMO, better than doing a spiritual successor to Torment, and it involves more of the powerhouses in the studio rather than turning me into the Nameless One.

Although disappointing, I just hope they do indeed follow through with a Kickstarter project that can take advantage of their wealth of ideas. Make it fascinating enough, and I have no doubt that the money-raised would be record-breaking.

Originally Posted by Drithius
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I wonder how expensive an over-the-shoulder 3D look would be. Preferably at a default zoom distance of, say, halfway between PS:T and The Witcher. With the ability to pan up over your head and look at the opposite, overhead end of Sigil (or whatever the Sigil'esque city is). I'm simply awed by what could become of that: walking through a market square with the architecture bending over you; in the distance, a faint shimmering viewable only at a specific angle.
…

I'm not sure I would like a new universe as much as the planes. It takes a lot of time to create such a sophisticated background, and Interplay even had two authors of the pen & paper campaign setting, one of them the original creator, to do these three games they had planned for. They brought in more than three years of background development. And I don't think many backers at Kickstarter would like to spend their money on a game they won't see for at least two years.

Originally Posted by Avantenor
I'm not sure I would like a new universe as much as the planes. It takes a lot of time to create such a sophisticated background, and Interplay even had two authors of the pen & paper campaign setting, one of them the original creator, to do these three games they had planned for. They brought in more than three years of background development. And I don't think many backers at Kickstarter would like to spend their money on a game they won't see for at least two years.

Well D&D licence cost and since this will be kickstarter project it will already be on tight budget.Also I am pretty sure he's been planing this for some time and he will have at least some part of work done before kickstarter campaign begins(which is also not going to happen that soon).

They killed Planescape, but it's D&D- they'd just have to Resurrect it. New edition coming out, a theoretically popular licence which has had very limited activity since NWN2, some signs of flexibility and new attitude with respect to Beamdog's remakes. It's not beyond the bounds of possibility that a mutually acceptable arrangement could be made.

It's pretty obviously planned as a "spiritual successor" though, so no direct references to anything owned by Hasbro and no use of D&D or anything else proprietary, at least for the moment.

I don't mind the setting, it could be a dreamworld too and then no need for licenses. I do want a turn-based tactical system or at least a pausable with commands system, definitely not twitch based. It's a party based game after all and don't come with a system like Dragon Age where you set the behaviour for the companions. I want to do it all.
As long as I have plenty of options to choose from in battle, I'm ok.

Originally Posted by Drithius
FINALLY: A man after my own heart! Why the hell has this aspect of game lore completely disappeared?! It added so much depth to BG and ID.

Yes! It's one of the aspects that I miss most in 00s RPGs. To be fair, some of my favourite titles, like Morrowind or Gothic did not make extended use of this (Morrowind had those legendary artifacts whose backstories you could find in an unique book, so that was kind of cool, but I wanted so much more of that. And I guess they also had the books which also played the role of offering you localized lore background, so that was cool too.) but that was one of my favourite thing in Baldur's Gate and Planescape: Torment. Every item you picked up might have ended up being an entire story in itself.

Pay the bills or not, it's a terrible terrible move. Then he threw that fit about used games. And now he denigrates Planescape and says he could have done better without it. I'd really like to see him try, rather than hear him talk about how he'd like to try.